Doha experiences severe traffic congestion

A number of city roads experienced severe traffic congestion for several hours on Sunday. Commuters narrated their experiences on social media, with some advising others to avoid certain roads in view of the long queues of vehicles there.

Queries found that traffic along the Doha Corniche was regulated in preparation for the visit of some top foreign dignitaries on Sunday. On account of this, no movement of vehicles was allowed in both directions of a stretch for several hours, starting from around 9.30 am.

As a result, long traffic queues were formed not only on roads leading to the Doha Corniche but also in parts of other arterial stretches such as Salwa Road, Rayyan Road and Suhaim Bin Hamad Street, among others.

Traffic, according to maps posted online by residents, had also slowed down on a portion of Ras Abu Abboud Street.

Congestion was particularly severe on the stretch of Salwa Road between the Midmac and Jaidah flyovers, said some of those caught in the traffic jam. There may be similar traffic regulations on Monday as well.

Caught unawares, many motorists posted on social media about the traffic congestion and speculated on the cause. Many of them advised other commuters to avoid driving towards the Corniche due to "major traffic congestion as the road is closed".

"Doha traffic backed up on Corniche from the National Theatre all the way to MIA, almost the whole way," said one of them. Another resident tweeted about helping nearby drivers by reporting standstill traffic on the Corniche.

Some commuters had expressed concern over traffic congestion near the Corniche on Saturday as well, with many wondering if similar conditions were expected over the coming days as well.